Making the Most Out of the Disney+ Release Date

That's right, it's the day Disney nerds like me have been waiting for for months: the much anticipated release of Disney+.  In case you've been living under a rock and don't know what Disney+ is, it's the streaming service that combines Disney, National Geographic, Marvel and Star Wars all together (along with the Simpsons since Disney recently acquired Fox).  Not only does this house all the Disney, Marvel and Star Wars movies you saw in theatres, it includes the DCOM (Disney Channel Original Movies) movies we grew up with, television shows and a whole host of original content.  It's pretty much a one stop shop for anything Disney, Marvel or Star Wars related.

Since Bryan and I are going to Disney World in February, I'm sure you're expecting me to write about how we're going to prepare for our trip and what Disney movies we want to watch before heading to Florida.  Well, that is something I want to talk about, but not today.  Today I want to just talk about Disney+ as a whole and how to get the most out of this new and exciting streaming experience.

Screenshot of Disney+ homescreen via the app

First, let's start with the homescreen.  It looks shockingly similar to Netflix's homescreen with big name releases scrolling across the top.  As you scroll down, the movies and television shows are broken down into a variety of categories: originals, recommended for you, hit movies, trending, out of the vault (referring to the famed Disney vault), inspired by true stories, etc.  There are about 20 or so different categories, and some movies might find themselves in more than one category.

You can also explore titles based on franchise: Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and National Geographic.  By clicking on any of these, you'll be taken to titles just for that franchise, so if you want to watch something Marvel related, all you have to do is click on "Marvel" to get a page that looks like this:

Screenshot of Marvel homepage on Disney+.

One thing Disney has been heavily advertising is the amount of original content that will be available on Disney+.  As of right now, there's definitely some unique specials and movies on there that haven't been seen anywhere else, but the big push that I've been excited for are the television shows for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the new Star Wars series.  The sheer number of both has been amazing, and it's giving both the MCU and Star Wars franchise the opportunity to branch out and fill in many different small stories they wanted to explore but couldn't work into movies.  When it comes to these two major groups, the only thing currently available is The Mandalorian.  For those familiar with the Star Wars franchise, you probably know that infamous Bounty Hunter Boba Fett was a Mandalorian, which is a humanoid race.  Since Boba Fett was a Mandalorian, that means the original clones (eventual Stormtroopers) are also Mandalorians.  This deals with a lone ranger type figure at the outskirts of the galaxy we've come to know and love over the past several decades.  Unlike Netflix, Disney+ is releasing one episode a week for its original content such as this.  I haven't talked to Bryan about when we'll watch this, but we'll most likely wait until the entire series is out and watch it all in a few days (which is what we've done with series in the past).  

When it comes to original Marvel series, there are four planned with tentative release dates.  Unfortunately, the earliest one will be released is next fall (Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which follows Bucky and Sam Wilson after Steve's decision to pass along the Captain America shield and stay in the past with Peggy).  The MCU will also expand with WandaVision in spring of 2021, which is the one I'm probably the most excited about, as Scarlet Witch is one of my favorite characters, and I love her with Vision.  Around the same time, Loki will premiere, which will follow our favorite god of mischief (played by Tom Hiddleston).  In the summer of 2021, What If... will also premiere.  This animated series will feature "what if" scenarios in the MCU (What if Uncle Ben didn't die?  What if Tony and Steve didn't part ways during the Civil War?).  Even though it's animated, it definitely looks interesting and worth exploring.  This will also open up a whole plethora of possibilities for the MCU. Finally, in the fall of 2021, Hawkeye will premiere.  As the name implies, this series deals with Clint Barton training the next Hawkeye.  Personally, I think it will be amazing to see Clint's development, especially given the fact he was put through the ringer in End Game.

In addition to all this wonderful original content available or coming soon, I'm also extremely excited about all the older content available on Disney+.  This is pretty much my childhood encapsulated in one streaming service, which is why I was so excited to get it.  First of all, Boy Meets World is on there.  Of course I'm going to make Bryan watch it, it would be a crime not to share one of my favorite childhood shows with him.  All of the Disney Channel Original Movies will be available too, which I'm equally excited about.  I remember Disney releasing a new one every month when I was little, and it was the most exciting thing to do on a Friday night in my mind.  I loved seeing this introduction pop up on the screen, telling me was time for an adventure and an amazing story.

While scrolling through all the content available (and after looking at previews for the past few months), I feel like my hardest decision is going to be figuring out where to start.  Thankfully, it's a half day today, which means once 12:30 hits, I'm free to go home and lose myself in Disney magic.  Check back later for more updates on Disney+.  I don't want to dump everything into one post, it would be way too much.